I wonder if the raccoons will like it though... don't they like shiny things? I think that's how Billy caught the first raccoon in Where the Red Fern Grows; the skin he used to train old Dan and little Ann.

The corn is so close, I don't wan to loose it to the raccoons again!

And the caged watermelons. I want the raccoons to leave them alone.

No critters seem to care for the potatoes. At least we'll have sweet potatoes. I don't think I even like sweet potatoes.

We needed a little break from yellow squash, but there are more coming.

Speaking of crazy, check out this maze of fabric strips holding the cages up.

Those tiny little plants have grown right over the tops of their cages and are weighing them down and toppling over without being supported. Next year, I'll use big tall yard stakes.

There are starting to be some pumpkins.

Some of the vines grew up the fence though and the little pumpkins are falling off the vines.

Here's something that's not crazy. It's the best thing I've ever done (other than marry my sweet hubby and have some babies). All through the garden, we placed sheets of newspaper at least three sheets thick and then topped it with cut grass from mowing. It was extra work with each mow, but has cut down the weeds to almost none. Nice clean places to walk and crawl (some tomatoes plants have grown so big I literally have to crawl under the branches to get to the other plants). Next year I'll give them more space. When they are little, they seem to have tons of free space, it almost seemed goofy. Now I see that they need more! That pumpkin picture above shows an area where I didn't get any paper and grass laid down. Weedy, grassy mess. Those vines are so prickly, there is not a lot of weeding going on over there!

3 comments:

Who is crazy now....lol :) It's ok, you're in good company cause I'm pretty sure I lost my sanity a while ago. (5 steady years of no full nights sleep will do that to you I suppose).

Funny....I googled 'How to keep a raccoon out of your garden' Their top recommendation was electric fences. lol Then something about ground up cayenne pepper and growing pumpkins and beans between corn rows so they can't scale stalks as easily. Interesting to a person who knows absolutely nothing about gardening (me).

Are you my twin? Do you know that Where the Red Fern Grows is my favorite book of all time? ALL TIME? And I have been mulching with grass clippings for years and this year, I have made extra efforts and they have paid off so well, keeping down the weeds. We even have the same kind of weeds in our gardens!